Students in Professor Laurie Gagne’s Approaches to Peace class have recently launched Campaign 2000. The campaign is in support of Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy’s Civilians Claims Act (CCA); newly crafted legislation that will provide adequate guidelines for compensating civilian victims accidently harmed by the United States military.
Why 2000?
Gagne and her students are hoping to solicit 2000 signatures from the St. Michael’s community in support of the CCA. With roughly 1,000 signatures currently, the class hopes to reach its goal by the end of November, Gagne says.
The class decided to get the signatures in person because they don’t want people to just sign on, they want people to know what their signature means, Gagne says.
“We really want educated signatures, we don’t want people to sign it just to sign it,” says Colleen Moore, a sophomore student in the class.
In order to receive educated signatures, the class is passing out information while tabling in Alliot. After signing, there is an option to request more information on the project.
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Approaches to Peace class pass out informational sheets to everyone who signs.
(Photo by Cailey McDermott) |
“I guess we feel that this is a better form of communication, to talk to them face to face, and to persuade them one person at a time,” Gagne says.
The class chose the goal of 2000 signatures because it symbolically represents the number of students at St. Michael’s, Gagne says.
Aside from a couple of students, the majority of people have been receptive. Challengers want to know the effects the CCA will have on their taxes, she says.
“Some people are hesitant to sign it because they don’t want their tax money to go to the Iraqis, but actually the Congress already has money set aside for it but it just not being utilized right now, so they don’t understand the tax dollar is already going to it,” Moore says.
“Our response is, ‘Well you know you’ve already spent one trillion dollars on the war in Iraq, and this is just a drop in the bucket,'” Gagne says.
What is the CCA?
To help educate students on the issue of payments for innocent war victims, Gagne brought in Marla Keenan, associate director for the Campaign for Innocent Victims In Conflict (CIVIC) to speak to her class.
“Marla was the one that told us about the project and in class the next day professor Gagne asked if the class wanted to do this project, and everyone agreed this was a great project,” says Leah Ziegler, a sophomore in the class.
Keenan has been working with CIVIC since October 2005. CIVIC believes that if the CCA was put into place, we would always know how to help civilians in different conflicts, Keenan says.
Before 2001 when the United States went into Afghanistan, there were no specific programs set up to address what happens to innocent civilians when they are accidentally harmed by the U.S. Army, Keenan says.
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In addition to tabling in Alliot students are going to classrooms to solicit signatures.
(Photo by Cailey McDermott) |
“[The government] created this ad hoc program, which they now call the condolence payment program,” Keenan says. “It basically allows for payments up to $2500 to families for death, injury, or property damage.”
So far only $15 million has been given to civilian victims with the current condolence program, Gagne says.
"There remains great disparity in the application of the current condolence program. Some units pay while others don’t," states the CIVIC Web site. In addition, "Unit officers responsible for the current program lack adequate training to implement the condolence program, including
an appropriate understanding of the significance of the payments."
"[The condolence program] is not adhered to in the same manner all across Iraq or Afghanistan,” Keenan says.
According to CIVIC’s Web site, “a proper claims system – as would be created by the Civilians Claim Act – will be permanent and well-structured to guarantee deserving civilians fair, adequate assistance and will improve efficiency for military lawyers in the field by ensuring uniform implementation, training and institutional knowledge of the program.”
Sen. Leahy is waiting for a Republican to co-sponsor so that the bill is bipartisan, Gagne says.
“We think there’s a big opportunity now because there’s going to be a new administration in town, and regardless of who it is we see that there’s a big opportunity to push the issue once there’s sort of a new feeling in Washington,” Keenan says.
A better image for America
The campaign will continue until the class reaches it goal of 2000 signatures. The class has been tabling in Alliot in addition to talking to individual classes. In the coming weeks they will be entering the dorms and setting up tables at sporting events, Gagne says.
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The students are hoping to reach their goal by the end of November.
(Photo by Cailey McDermott) |
Ziegler says that the campaign has been a group effort between the whole class and Gagne. The act will help create a better image for Americans, Ziegler says.
Through the campaign Gagne hopes her students will understand “that you don’t have to be a specialist or be a professional politician to advocate successful for change,” she says.
“If we have enough money to launch a war and wage a war for years, and be an occupying force for years, we should have enough money to help these innocent civilians,” Gagne says. |
